X Reader
by uNperfectXxXx
Summary: A collection of fluffy, smutty and funny One-Shots starring you and various One Piece characters. Rated M because, duh, smut. Currently featuring: Mihawk, Usopp
1. Mihawk x Reader

**As it says in the description this is a collection of One-Shots where one of the One Piece guys or girls will get a smutty, fluffy or funny little scene with you. I'll try to make the personality of the Reader vary a little each time so everyone can find something he or she can relate to.  
If there's a specific character you want to see, please tell me! I'll try to make something up. Also, I won't only do one story per person, so you can still ask for a story with e.g Zoro even if someone else has chosen him before. Just... not always the same people, please.  
****Now on with the story!**

**WARNING: This One-Shot contains SMUT! You've been warned.**

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**Mihawk x Reader**

Maybe it was the bad lighting of the tavern. Maybe it was a reflection of the candlelight shining from the table he sat at. Maybe it was simply my imagination or another reason altogether that I just couldn't fathom.

But there was no way in hell anyone's eyes could actually be _gleaming_ like this.

I couldn't help glancing back at him every now and then as I dried the dishes. Even from the distance it looked like his eyes gave a light of their own, that's how bright they were. And yellow was such an unusual eye color, too. I'd never seen eyes like his in my life even though this bar was famous for the number of foreigners who frequented it. Everything else about him, his black coat, his hat, his beard, even his poise... nothing really stood out to me, especially compared to some of the other guests I'd seen (a particular customer with technicolor clothes and an abnormally large, red nose came to mind). Hell, I probably wouldn't have looked at him twice if it weren't for his eyes.

...Probably.

Placing the dried mug on the counter next to me I bent over to reach for a rag underneath the sink when I suddenly felt an unpleasant shiver run down my spine. Acting on instinct I whipped around in the direction of the strange man... Only to find a group of pirates a few tables over whistling and hooting at my flustered state. For some reason I actually felt disappointed that it wasn't the yellow-eyed man staring at me.

To hide the obvious blush on my face I turned around and started messing with the alcohol bottles even though they were already perfectly aligned. What was wrong with me? I wasn't usually this jumpy.

"Excuse me."

Startled from my thoughts I quickly turned around to the new customer. "H-Hai!"

The old man laughed, a nice and warm sound. "I'm sorry, young lady. I didn't mean to scare you."

My face only turned a deeper shade of red. "Oh, no, it's me who should apologize. What can I do for you, Sir?"

"Some sake to start with, I suppose", he said benignly. "I'm waiting for someone."

"A meeting?", I asked with a smile of my own as I fixed his drink. "Well, business is low today, so the atmosphere might be just right for a little chat."

The customer hummed his agreement and tipped his hat in thanks when I placed his drink in front of him. Since he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts I went to the other end of the bar to get my dish towel when suddenly the uncomfortable feeling of being watched made me pause. I looked up to see the pirates from before leaning against the bar in a way that they must have thought to be 'cool'.

"Oi lady, wat'cha sayin you's be goin' with us for t'night?", one of them slurred at me, obviously drunk past his limit.

Squaring my shoulders I stood my ground at the front of the counter. "I'm very sorry, Sir, but this bar does not offer services of that kind", I replied calmly, looking directly at him. Past experiences had taught me not to back away. The likes of him usually viewed it as a challenge.

"N'aww, c'moon. Don' be like that!", he bellowed, leaning across to get a better look at my face. "Yerr pretty and I'mma be back at sea t'morrow..."

"Then a good night's sleep is what you might need the most right now, good Sir", I said politely, picking up my towel and starting to dry a plate. Even though I (hopefully) looked unfazed on the outside my heart was pounding like crazy. I really hated situations like this. Unwillingly my eyes flitted over to the yellow-eyed man just to find him staring somewhere into the distance.

A fist banging onto the counter brought me back to the situation at hand. "Don' mess with me, woman!", the pirate growled and reached for my arm, tugging on it. "Actin' all high'n'mighty, eh? 'S jus' for one night, c'mon!"

I winced when his grip tightened on my upper arm, reaching up with my other hand to try and pull his fingers off me to no avail. He only held on tighter, making me hiss at the sudden pain.

"Let me go, please. I said no!", I almost shouted, panic starting to seep into my voice. I looked back over at the foreigner in a silent plea for help. He was still looking away.

"I don' _take _NO!", the pirate shouted, pulling me even closer towards him so I could feel his alcohol-ridden breath on my face. My eyes watered at the stench. "I'll show ya a good time, so why don'cha'-"

"Excuse me."

I whipped around towards the voice, relief making my heart flutter as I saw the nice elderly customer from earlier laying a hand on the pirate's shoulder, smiling almost icily at him.

"I believe the lady said no, so I'd suggest that you back off."

For a moment the pirate looked like was going to talk back, but something about the man seemed to intimidate him. He snapped his mouth shut and angrily shrugged the hand off.

"Fine!", he bellowed. "We's abou' t'leave anyway!" With that he stomped out of the tavern, his nakama following him like lost puppies, shooting suspicious glances at the customer from the corner of their eyes.

Said man turned towards me with an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry for not interfering sooner, young lady. I didn't expect them to be this persistent."

"Oh no, you helped me plenty, kind Sir", I said as I bowed to him respectfully, feeling like a huge weight rolled of my chest. "Thank you very much. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't been here."

"Well, I suppose my 'friend' would have sliced them up", the man said with laughter in his voice, leaning closer to whisper conspiratorially. "He's been staring at you for a while now, I bet you've noticed."

I blushed a little at the last comment when something about what he said made me pause. "Wait, your friend? I thought you were still waiting for him to get here."

The man shook his head with an amused smile. "Oh no, he's been here all along. I'm just waiting for him to finish his drink and come over to talk."

I cocked my head in confusion. "But, why...?"

He laughed at my stunned expression. "Don't even try to understand. He has his own way of handling things, that guy."

I nodded slowly, my brow slightly furrowed. "Then who-"

"Garp", a smooth voice suddenly sounded from behind the customer. I twisted around a little to get a good look at who spoke and felt my breath hitch.

It was the foreigner!

Briskly averting my eyes I busied myself with the empty mugs in front of me, trying to ignore the blush about to take over my face yet again. Geez, what was _wrong_ with me?

"Ah, Mihawk", I heard the nice man – apparently Garp – reply as he turned towards the other. "I'm surprised that you actually decided to show yourself for once."

"I'm surprised to see you here as well." That made me wonder. Didn't they agree to meet up beforehand?

"Haha, touché. Anyway, I'm here to deliver a message from Sengoku."

"Why did he send _you_?" I was honestly trying hard not to eavesdrop, but _god_, just hearing that voice made me all fidgety now that I knew it belonged to him. Deep and silky smooth, yet not quite as low-pitched as I had expected it to be. Not that I had imagined what it would sound like or anything. I turned away from the two men, trying to at least look like I wasn't listening as I desperately willed my heartbeat to slow down. It didn't.

Garp laughed boisterously behind me. "Well, I guess he didn't want to expose any of his other men to your attitude. They're saying that you can be quite intimidating."

"Is that so?" I couldn't see it, but I swore I felt the man called 'Mihawk' smirk just slightly behind my back. There was a strong urge to turn around and look, but I kept myself busy sorting through the alcohol bottles again, feeling frustrated with myself. Was that a nervous tick or what?

"Indeed." I heard a rustling of paper. "Everything's written on here. Not even I know what it's about."

"Understood." Rustling sounds again. "Is that it?"

"I guess so." The sound of a bar stool scraping across the floor. "I'll be taking my leave then. Young lady?"

I turned back towards him quickly, desperately avoiding any and all eye-contact with the foreign man. "H-Hai?"

Garp smiled at my nervous antics, tipping his hat as he put his coat back on (which I only just noticed had a Navy symbol on it – holy shit, was he a Marine?), and placed a few coins for his drink on the counter. "It was a pleasure meeting you."

I smiled back at him, bowing slightly. "The pleasure was all mine, Sir. I hope our services were satisfactory for you." I desperately tried to ignore the yellow eyes boring into the side of my head, but I could already feel nervous sweat forming on my nape. "And thank you again for what you did earlier."

Garp laughed once more, putting a hand on my shoulder. "No need to be so formal! And stop with the 'Sir' crap, it's Garp for you." With that he stood, tipping his hat to Mihawk as well and leaving the bar.

I watched him go with a forced smile, every nerve in my body screaming 'Come back, come back, don't leave me alone with him, no, no, no!' until he reached the exit and walked out with a last wave. Maybe it was my imagination, but the sound of the door closing seemed entirely too final.

With dread pooling in my stomach I turned back towards the man called Mihawk and almost fell over at the intense look in his eyes. Oh dear, up close they looked all but_ too _yellow, almost like bird eyes!

I swallowed heavily as I put on my best smile. "Can I bring you something to drink, Sir? Or a small meal?"

No response. He just kept staring. I was about to ask again when he shook his head. "No, thank you."

Very helpful. "Alright. Feel free to call me if you need anything", I said a little awkwardly as I went back to my business.

Hours went by and even though he didn't order anything Mihawk never left his spot. It was incredibly distracting as my eyes kept drifting over to him only to find him looking directly at me, acting all serious yet never doing as much as utter a single word. I was just about to rip my own hair out in frustration when the clock mercifully announced the end of my shift.

I tried not to look too relieved as I bid Mihawk a polite farewell and retreated to the back room, ridding myself of my working clothes and greeting Nelly, the girl who would take over the bar for me.

...And stand there for the rest of the night. Alone. With Mihawk.

The sudden bout of jealousy took me completely by surprise. I clenched my fists, feeling more than frustrated with myself. What, so a minute ago I was desperate to get away from him and now I wanted to go back? This was getting ridiculous! I slapped a hand against my forehead a few times, trying to clear my thoughts. Sleep. I needed sleep.

Shaking my head at my own antics I grabbed my stuff and left through the back door. My small apartment was only a few blocks away, so I could easily walk- Right into someone, apparently.

"Gah!", I shouted and almost tripped over my own feet as I took a step back only to be caught by a strong hand that pulled me right back up.

"Oh my god", I immediately apologized. "I'm so sorry, I didn't see-" My breath stuck in my throat as I looked up. Oh hell no.

"Don't worry", Mihawk said as he let go of my hand. "It was my fault."

I could only gape at him. "You- But- Why are you- I thought..." My voice trailed off as I realized how rude I was being. I took a deep breath and smiled apologetically instead, trying to look calmer than I felt. "I'm sorry. This just... surprised me a little."

Those yellow eyes shone bright even in the darkness as he stared at me. I swallowed hard, unable to look away. A part of my brain told me to run as fast as my feet could carry me, but an even bigger part urged me to stay right here. Not that I could have moved right now, even if I'd wanted to. I recoiled slightly when Mihawk suddenly held out a hand towards me, his ever serious gaze burning into mine.

"Come."

I couldn't even breathe. "Eh?"

"Don't be scared." Was he hypnotizing me? It sure felt like it. "Come with me."

My feet felt like they were glued to the ground. "I... Why?"

Probably sensing my fear his eyes softened into something a little less demanding, his voice also lowering. "I'm sure you know that."

And I did. Oh, how I did. Nelly's shifts usually ended with this sort of thing and with the way she liked to brag there was little I _didn't_ know about this. I'd just never done it myself before.

But oh how tempting this was. Mihawk was so very attractive, probably more attractive than any other man I'd seen before. And there was just something about the confident way he talked, his stance, his _voice_... Everything about him lured me in.

Holding out my hand I hesitated just before grabbing his. "I, um... I'm a virgin", I stuttered out, internally face-palming right afterwards. I just _had to_ say that, didn't I? Stupid, stupid, stupid!

Mihawk's gaze didn't waver. "I won't force you into anything."

I blinked in disbelief, eyes slightly narrowing. This was just too good to be true. Why would a grown man go for a virgin if he could have women with way more experience? But no matter how I looked at him, I found no lie in his eyes.

It wasn't until I felt him gently pulling me along that I realized I had grabbed his hand. Looking along our joined arms my eyes fell on something he held in his left.

"You're a swordsman?"

He looked back over his shoulder, staying halfway turned as he stared at me for the hundredth time that day, yet still gracefully avoiding every obstacle in the alley. Did he have a sixth sense or something? "Yes."

I almost didn't hear him over my thoughts when he spoke. "Oh. That's nice. My father used to be one." Yeah, right. When he was like twelve and took three or four lessons.

Seemingly unfazed by my comment Mihawk led me around a corner and up some stairs leading to an apartment complex quite similar to the one I lived at. Now that we were so close my nervousness came back with a vengeance. I grit my teeth against it. God, being a virgin didn't mean I had to be a whiny bitch about it!

My grip on his hand must have tightened for Mihawk didn't let go even when he had to put down his sword in order to pull out the keys to let us in with his other hand. As I followed him inside I turned this way and that to not miss a single detail about his house... until I noticed that there wasn't much of anything inside. Just bare necessities, a bed, a small table, a chair. It was painfully obvious that Mihawk wasn't here to stay.

I perked up when the swordsman suddenly let go of my hand to walk across the room and light the single candle in the middle of it. Self-consciously rubbing my arms I looked anywhere but at Mihawk as he silently shed his coat and put it on a hanger, carefully placing his sword right next to it. I only looked back up from where I'd been eying the floor when I felt his presence right in front of me. His hands on my shoulders made me stiffen in expectation until I realized he was only trying to remove my jacket for me. I uncurled my arms to make it easier for him, stepping out of the cloth with a small "Thank you" as he put it away.

Okay, I seriously needed to calm down. I chose this myself, for God's sake! It's not like he's trying to molest me!

"Here." His soft but firm voice shook me from my thoughts. I looked up to see a glass of red wine held out in front of me and took it gratefully. Liquid courage. Just what I needed.

"Thank you", I said, voice not shaking anymore as I took a nice, long sip. That's right, I made my decision. This wasn't that big of a deal, dammit!

He sat down on the chair by the table, motioning for me to sit on the bed. I slowly crossed the room, feeling his gaze follow me. His constant staring might have been unnerving in the beginning, but now I found myself not minding it all that much anymore. In fact the attention made me strut just a little bit. I hoped he didn't notice.

After we drank in comfortable silence (how that much silence in one evening could still be comfortable I did not know) he gallantly took my glass from me and placed it on the table. I could literally feel the mood shift as he turned back towards me.

"Don't be scared", he said in a confident tone, slowly but surely crossing the two steps of distance between us. I swear my heart skipped a beat. "We have time."

His hand found its way to the back of my neck where he gracefully twirled my hair around his fingers to tip my head back just slightly. I closed my eyes and gulped nervously, expecting a kiss, but instead I felt a pair of nimble fingers run across my cheekbones, my closed eyelids, my lips, my neck. I opened my eyes again to see just a hint of a smile grace his features before he bent down and lowered his lips to mine, taking me by surprise.

Unconsciously holding my breath I waited for something – anything – to happen only to be disappointed again as he pulled away from our chaste kiss to press his lips against the side of my chin, languidly traveling down my jawline. I only noticed that he had tipped my body back when I heard my hair brush against the mattress as he left kisses along my collarbone. It didn't make me feel vulnerable like I thought it would, no really, I was more impressed with the fact that he supported my whole body weight like it was nothing with just the one hand on my neck. Handsome and strong, too, well, if _that_ wasn't hot...

One of his hands came up to run along the small of my back, dipping down to slip under my shirt and feel my skin for the first time. I shivered at the soft touch, involuntarily arching up into his body hovering above mine. He took advantage of it, keeping me in place as he met me halfway, somehow managing to pull me fully into his lap as our chests made contact. My breathing was speeding up and I felt that all too familiar blush creep onto my face again, so I instinctively lifted a hand to hide it from him. It didn't even reach my face before it was caught in a firm yet gentle grip.

"Don't" was all he said before going back to nuzzling my neck. The slightly commanding tone in his voice made me tingle pleasantly. Was he doing it on purpose?

I suddenly felt rather stupid just sitting there doing nothing, so I reached for his shoulders, running my hands over firm muscles (God, just how perfect could he get?) down to his upper back to catch him in a loose embrace. He seemed to appreciate it judging by his small, almost silent hum.

"Hold on", he murmured in my ear and I let out a surprised squeak as he suddenly lifted me up without any visible effort to turn around and properly lay me down on the bed. His own body hovered above mine, held up by muscular arms as he looked me deep in the eyes. "It's better like this."

I could only nod dumbly before he lowered himself on top of me, bodies suddenly touching everywhere as he tilted his head and kissed me, prying my mouth open with his tongue and taking full advantage of my flustered state as he roamed my mouth for all it was worth. It wasn't my first kiss by any means, but it might as well have been because none of my prior experiences even came close to what _this_ was. I tried to give back as much as he gave, but soon surrendered and just let him do as he pleased, opting to run my hands through his short hair instead as he effortlessly found sensitive spots I didn't even know I had. I'd never felt this dominated before, but God, I loved it!

When we broke apart I was gasping for air while Mihawk on the other hand didn't seem to have any trouble breathing. Now that wouldn't do.

Not one to be outdone I grasped the back of his head, pulling him back in and licking at his cheek, drawing a trail all the way to his earlobe. I smirked in triumph when I heard him suck in a breath, but started when his hands suddenly found my chest, undoing the buttons of my shirt. To hide my nervousness I quickly returned the favor, slowly uncovering bits of his well-built chest until I could pull his shirt over his shoulders, sitting up so he could do the same for me.

The feeling of skin on skin was glorious. I moaned as his hands traveled up and down my back, leaving trails of goosebumps in their wake. When he started fiddling with the fastener on my bra I was quick to comply, letting him pull it off me and throw it somewhere across the room. He leaned back to take in the view of me half-nakedly splayed across his bed. I stared right back.

Now I understood how he could be strong enough to single-handedly lift me. Everything about him was taut, firm muscle, from his strong neck to his chiseled chest down to the deep V disappearing into his pants. I had to divert my eyes from the bulge there with a blush. The scars marring his skin in more places than I could count didn't bother me at all, in fact I was itching to touch them, maybe trace them with my tongue...

He lowered himself back on top of me without a word, closing a warm hand over one of my breasts and kneading it slowly. I almost purred at his surprising gentleness, melting further into the pillow beneath me with a content sigh.

"You're very responsive", Mihawk mused. I could feel him smile against my collarbone. "Interesting."

"Mmh", I oh so intelligently responded, arching my back to push further into his hand. God, that felt good. But... Why wasn't he moving?

I glanced up at him through my eyelids to see what made him stop and almost flinched at the suddenly dark look in his bright yellow eyes. What...

I followed his gaze to my left arm and sighed when I saw a finger-shaped bruise in the spot the pirate from the bar had gripped me earlier. So that's what it was.

I smiled at Mihawk. "It's okay. Doesn't even- Whoa!"

My eyes went wide when Mihawk suddenly grabbed me, lifting me clear off the bed to pull me into a fierce kiss. I couldn't help but melt into it even though I was a little confused. Was Mihawk actually angry about this? He couldn't be_ jealous_, right? That would be ridiculous!

Whatever it was, I couldn't find it in me to complain, not when Mihawk had finally started to get serious about this, skipping the teasing from before. What clothes we had left on were gone within minutes, forgotten on the floor as he lowered himself on top of me once again, his erection digging into my hip. I drew a sharp breath at the feeling, trying not to be too obvious about my astonishment, but geez, he was _huge!_

I chocked on air when he suddenly thrust against me once, twice, quietly groaning into my ear in that low voice, just slightly strained like he was holding himself back. Knowing that I caused this sent a jolt straight to my groin, making me shiver pleasantly. Fuck...

My hands reached up to tangle in his hair, pulling him close enough to wrap my arms around him in a tight hug. I needed this. I hadn't known it before, but right now, in this moment, I _needed_ it.

"Please", I whispered shakily, not trusting my voice as my arms tightened around him even more. "_Please._.."

He shushed me gently, stroking my side with one hand as the fingers of the other slowly slid up my inner thigh. I gasped when he suddenly cupped me, fingers digging into the wet heat underneath, both stretching and probing inside. My legs spread of their own accord, giving him room to line us up as I moaned deeply, pushing back on his fingers.

I could feel him stare at me even with my eyes closed, making me blush at the lewd sounds that I couldn't quite stop. "Ah... Mihawk..."

He took a sharp breath, taking his fingers out to replace them with something bigger, finally, _finally_ pushing inside. I hissed at the discomfort that came with it.

"Hah... slow- aah, go slower..."

He did as I asked, tightening his grip on my hips to keep from just thrusting in. "Relax. We're almost there."

I nodded frantically, squeezing my eyes shut as he slid all the way in, my mouth falling open at the feeling. It was uncomfortable first and foremost, but knowing that it was _him_ inside _me_ made it just slightly exhilarating.

"Relax", he repeated, stroking a soothing hand over my stomach as he kissed my neck. "We don't have to hurry."

I nodded as I took deliberately slow breaths, shifting on the bed in an effort to get used to the feeling. When he finally started moving it was already much easier than before and I hummed in pleasure, wrapping my arms around him as he spread my legs further apart. The pace picked up quickly after that as everything became more needy, more desperate. I clutched his shoulders, leaving scratch marks that would probably hurt tomorrow, but he didn't seem to mind, thrusting into me with enough force to make the bed creak. He didn't moan even once, keeping firm control over his voice, but his hitched breathing and the tight grip he had on me showed me just how much he enjoyed it.

In the end I came first, clamping down on him with my legs and hands as I moaned into his shoulder. He thrust into me a few more times, shuddering out his orgasm as I tightened around him with a tired groan. I slumped back onto the bed after he pulled out, still feeling a light throbbing between my legs from the aftershocks of my orgasm. He lay down next to me, an arm cushioning his head and a satisfied gleam in his eyes. Somehow he managed to look even more beautiful like that.

I looked up at his just slightly flushed face, a strange warmth spreading through me at the sight. Now I finally understood why Nelly liked to do this so much.

He didn't fight me when I put a hand across his chest to snuggle closer, but neither did he encourage me. Instead he reached out to somewhere across the bed and silently pulled a blanket over both of us.

"Thank you", I said softly, not expecting an answer and not getting one. He put out the candle on the nightstand just as I lay my head on his chest, signaling the end of this evening. To my own surprise I was not even remotely disappointed.

My breathing evened out as I listened to the sound of his steadily beating heart. In that moment it didn't matter who he was or where he was going. It didn't matter if I was ever going to see him again or how many other girls he would leave behind at a different harbor. A part of him was always going to stay with me and I knew that a part of me would stay with him, no matter what.

"I'll be gone in the morning."

He didn't sound regretful or apologetic, just stated a fact that we both already knew. I smiled as I finally drifted off to sleep, feeling his chest rise and fall with every breath he took.

"I know."

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**I didn't plan for it to turn out this long, it just kind of happened... Oh well. I hope you liked it anyway :) Thanks for reading! - Ani**


	2. Usopp x Reader

**Okay, here's the second One-Shot, this time featuring Usopp. It's a little different from the first one, mainly because there's no smut and an actual background story behind it (I know, surprise, surprise!). Anyway, I hope you enjoy it! :)**

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**Usopp x Reader**

There was absolutely nothing here. So what the hell was he drawing?

I tried squinting my eyes, turning my head, looking in every possible direction, but... nothing. I didn't see anything worth the effort of drawing it. Just the plain old stupid market with hordes of people bustling about and shouting their prizes. And off to the side, watching, scrutinizing, was a man with a ridiculously long nose huddled over a sheet of paper, tongue between his lips in concentration as he scratched his pen over the page. What was so interesting that he felt like he had to save it in a drawing? I walked through this place every day and never saw anything worth mentioning.

Both curious and slightly frustrated I looked this way and that, trying to find something special, something exciting... But found that everything was the same as ever. I startled when he suddenly looked up, eyes fixed on something further down the street where my eyes couldn't reach. Well, now my interest was piqued.

I could've just walked up to him and asked to see his drawing, maybe even simply looked over his shoulder, but that seemed a little too straight-forward. I sighed. Should I really talk to him? I didn't recognize him, actually I'd never seen him around before. From the looks of it he was probably a foreigner, maybe a merchant's son. Who knew how he might react? The few artists I'd met before all didn't want to be disturbed while they were working. I really didn't want to be rude, but... ah, fuck it.

I walked up to him with determined steps, stopping directly in front of him.

"Hey."

He looked up, probably surprised to be spoken to. "Huh?"

"What are you drawing?", I asked, nodding in the direction of his sketchbook.

"What am I-" The man followed my line of sight, a smile finding its way to his face. "Oh, that? It's nothing special."

I cocked my head to the side, crossing my arms. "Can I see it?"

"You...", he said, looking rather taken aback, eyes wide in surprise. "You want to?"

"Yes, please."

A huge grin lit up his face and he laughed loudly, startling me. "Yosh, yosh, so you want to see the great masterpieces of the amazing Captain Usopp-sama, huh? You should know, I am actually a world famous painter with over 8000 followers", he exclaimed with great flourish, making people turn to look at him quizzically.

I blinked. "What are you talking about?"

He didn't lose his grin, simply patted the space next to him to beckon me over. I sat down, still looking at him from the corner of my eyes. What a strange man.

Usopp - he said that was his name, right? - didn't seem to mind. He simply kept drawing, his sketchbook slightly tilted towards me so I could see. Full of curiosity I leaned over to get a closer look at... Wait...

I stared at the picture for a good minute before I could come up with something to say. "I... what?"

He looked up at me questioningly. "Hm?"

"Is that... a bird's nest?", I asked, pointing at the picture of the two flying sparrows, one of them feeding its children nestled in straw off to the side. Don't get me wrong, it was beautifully drawn and very detailed, but... Well, I didn't know what I expected, but it definitely wasn't _that._

"Yes, yes it is", he told me with a smile, pointing to some far corner on a roof. "Look, up there."

I looked in the direction of his finger and sure enough there was a family of birds nesting in the gables. I could just barely make out the baby chicks flitting around in the hay, little beaks wide open in hunger. My eyes widened in surprise. "You're right! How did you notice that?"

He cocked his head. "How did you not?"

I stuttered for an answer, suddenly ashamed. It was true, I walked through this street every day and never even noticed something like that. How embarrassing.

"Hey now, cheer up, I was joking", he laughed, patting my shoulder. "But seriously, this town is amazing! There's so much cool stuff around here!"

I cocked an eyebrow at that. "Like what?"

Usopp stared right back, seemingly surprised. "The market! The people! They're interesting, don't you think?"

No, I really didn't. "Well..."

"You don't think so?" He tilted his head, eying me with a look I couldn't read. "Is there really nothing you like here?"

"No, nothing at..." I trailed off as I looked into the distance, suddenly remembering something. "No, wait. There's one thing."

He perked up at that. "Really? And what's that?"

I thought about it for a while before pointing to the north entrance. "When you walk this way out of town there's nothing but grass fields and small trees everywhere you look, but somewhere to the right you can see a path that leads you up the hill into a forest. If you keep going straight you'll find a pretty big tree trunk that got knocked over by the wind ages ago. And behind it..." I trailed off, suddenly feeling a little stupid. Why did I even remember this?

"What, what's behind it?", Usopp asked excitedly.

I hesitated just a second before sighing in answer. "Strawberries."

He seemed a little stunned. "Strawberries?"

"Yeah", I said, a fond smile finding its way onto my face. "They don't grow anywhere else on the island, so those few plants were like a treasure to me." I tipped my head back, looking at the sky in remembrance. "My friends and I used to go there every summer to pluck them. Nancy's mother had a farm, so she always brought some homemade cream to dip them in." I chuckled. "We barely ever got two hands full, but it was enough to keep us happy for days."

I turned to find Usopp staring at me intently as if he was trying to figure something out. That look was gone in a flash though as he smiled widely at me.

"Can I see them?", he asked. "The strawberries?"

I eyed him silently for a little while before nodding slowly. "Sure."

His grin grew as he stood up, pulling me with him. "Yosh! Let's go!"

The walk wasn't very long and I was surprised by how familiar it all still looked even though it had been years since I'd walked this path. The carving in our tree was still there, the forest smelled exactly the way I remembered it, even our secret base – though covered in moss – still stood tall. I took everything in with a strange sort of awe. Just like old times...

When the trunk came into view I stopped.

"Here it is", I said, motioning Usopp forward.

He stepped up, walking around the trunk to take a long look at my treasure. I stayed where I was as I watched a soft smile play over his lips.

"It's a beautiful spot", he finally said, sitting down and pulling out his sketchbook. The scratching of pen over paper was the only sound I heard as he worked in silence, me just standing off to the side, watching him yet not actually looking at him. This place brought back so many memories. It reminded me of why I hadn't been here for so long.

"Your friends", he suddenly spoke up, startling me from my thoughts. "What were they like?"

I sighed and looked into the distance as I remembered their faces. God, I hadn't seen them for so long. "There were four of us. We called ourselves the 'Super Forest Peace Rangers' even though we were anything but peaceful and quiet." I didn't even notice the smile tugging at my lips, too caught up in the memory. "Nancy always had her hair in pigtails because her mother didn't want her to wear it loose. For some reason Kurt really liked to pull on it. I always thought it was because he had a crush on her." I couldn't help but chuckle slightly as I remembered that. It had been obvious, really. "Noah was a wild child, always talking big about adventures and getting us into all kinds of trouble. But he had a really big heart, especially for his friends. He used to run around saying that we were his 'nakama' and everything." I closed my eyes, smile turning soft. "I miss those times."

Usopp didn't say anything, just sat there quietly sketching for a few minutes longer, but I could tell that he had heard every word. I watched him, feeling at ease for the first time in a long while. It felt really good for some reason, knowing that someone else now knew of my treasure even though all there was to it were a few strawberries and some fond memories.

"Yosh, I'm done", Usopp suddenly said, standing up and walking back over to me, smiling that huge smile of his. "Let's go back!"

His enthusiasm was contagious, so I found myself smiling back just a little. "Yeah, let's."

The way back was filled with stories of his great adventures at sea, his boisterous laughing and my amused comments. Even though he was obviously lying (who ever heard of an island in the sky, I mean seriously) I found myself enjoying his company more and more. I was almost sad to see him off once we got to town and it was time for him to go. To my surprise he didn't bother to make a huge dramatic scene about it, simply putting a piece of paper in my hand and then walking away with a hand raised in silent goodbye.

Once he left I unfolded the page he had handed to me and looked at it. And looked harder. And then some more.

The first tear hit the paper with a mute splash, making me blink and raise my head only to find that he had already disappeared into the crowd.

I looked back at the drawing, at the girl with the pigtails, the boy pulling on them, the little brat striking a hero pose. I looked at my younger self, shockingly accurate in her looks, sitting at their side laughing and holding a small basket in her hands. And around them... strawberries.

Tears blurred my eyes before I squeezed them firmly shut, choking on a sob. It looked nothing like the scene had back then, but that wasn't the point.

I knew for a fact that there were no strawberries behind the tree trunk anymore. The small plants had long since died, just like Nancy and Kurt and Noah. But there was no way he could have known that. He couldn't have.

I clutched the paper to my chest with a shaking hand, hiding the message he left behind on the bottom of the drawing. And I cried, not caring in the least that people were staring, not listening to the questions of 'Are you okay?' or 'What happened?', not even noticing the grinning man leaning against a wall around the corner before he put his sketchbook away and walked towards the harbor. Nothing could have ruined this moment for me.

And even though they looked nothing like my friends had and there were no strawberries anymore I couldn't help but smile through my tears as I looked at the bird's nest across the street, silently thanking the stranger who gave me what I needed without even knowing he did.

_'You should smile more often. - U'_

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**Thanks for reading! Please leave a review and tell me what you think :) - Ani**


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